PARA DRESSAGE VIRTUAL INTERNATIONAL JUDGING PILOT PROGRAM Bringing the International Judges to you! US Equestrian is pleased to announce the new virtual, Para Dressage Judging Pilot Program. To kick off the pilot program, two international judges, Sarah Rodger and Marco Orsini have graciously agreed to view your uploaded U-Tube videos and provide official score sheets for each test entered. The Para Dressage Virtual international judging program is the first step in tackling the huge geographical challenge in the US. It takes ongoing monitoring and regular assessment to improve performance in any sport, and I trust this great opportunity given to you by USEF will be your first tool in the box to open the door to significant awareness, and hopefully progress. We have carefully chosen two five-star judges who are based in Europe (Sarah Rodger/United Kingdom and Marco Orsini/Germany), to give you a solid evaluation of your test riding based on their current experience with the leading international scene. Furthermore, it will give me a chance to regularly give you the necessary technical input for you to adapt your home program in accordance to the judges comments. This is a pilot scheme and the program might evolve following the appropriate feedback. Michel Assouline, USEF High Performance Consultant and Head of Para-Equestrian Coach Development. We welcome the entire U.S. Para-Dressage community to the new exciting virtual judging program. All riders, trainers and USEF/USPEA Centers of Excellence now have the opportunity to have rides judged and evaluated by a world-class panel of judges. This program will certainly help to overcome the burden and difficulty of travel across the USA. We are thankful to USEF and their staff to offer this fantastic opportunity to our Para community. Kai Handt, USEF Para-Dressage Chef d Equipe
Eligibility Athletes All athletes, 12 years old and over, with a permanent, measurable, physical disability are welcome to enter a FEI Para Dressage Test of Choice (Novice, Team, Individual, Freestyle) in their Classified Grade or in the Grade athlete anticipates he/she will be classified in the future. Horse Horses must be a minimum of six (6) years of age. The age is counted from the 1st January of the year of birth. Must be braided No horse numbers Dress 1. All Athletes must be neatly and correctly dressed at all times. 2. Protective Headgear must be worn by Athletes at all times whilst mounted. 4. Black or brown boots or stout riding shoes with heels must be worn. Plain black or brown half-chaps or gaiters to the knee may be used. 5. For Competitions, breeches shall be worn, jackets are optional, but recommended. 6. Stock or tie: optional, but recommended. white, off-white or same color as coat. 7. Gloves: white, off-white or same color as coat. 8. Riding boots: black or same color as coat. 9. Safety vests (including inflatable) are permitted. 10. Spurs are optional. Spurs must be made of metal. The shank must be either curved or straight, pointing directly back from the centre of the spur when on the Athlete s boot. Spurs must not be offset, unless allowed as a compensating aid and noted on the FEI Classification Master List. The arm of the spur must be smooth and blunt. If rowels are used, they must be blunt, smooth and free to rotate. Metal spurs with round hard plastic knobs ( Impuls spurs) or Dummy spurs with no shank are allowed. Saddlery Per FEI Rules which can be found here http://inside.fei.org/sites/default/files/ped%202017_rules_nov_2016_final%20clean.pdf FEI Dressage Tests FEI Para Dressage Tests may be found here: http://inside.fei.org/fei/your-role/organisers/p-edressage/tests Gr. I, II, III must ride in 40 x 20 meter arena. Gr. IV, V must ride in 60 x 20 meter arena. Video Procedure The camera must be placed a C (far end of ring/arena), approximately 16.5 feet back and between 5 8 high. If the zoom feature is used the horse may be no larger than ¼ of the screen. The recording should start approximately 5 seconds before the rider enters the arena. In an indoor arena, the rider may already be in the arena, and the recording will start 5 seconds
before the judging of the class begins. The recording should finish approximately 5 seconds after the class ends or after the final salute at the end of the test. Always film with your back to the sun Make sure the camera is steady and the horse in the center of the frame Use highest quality setting on camera Set the zoom before you start and do not alter it once you have started filming Ensure the light setting is correct for the time of day Stand at C either with your back to C or behind C facing A and do not move from that spot Make sure you video from the start of the test as they turn on center line and keep videoing until after the final halt so we can see some walk work as the leave the arena (1/2 dozen steps or so) a. Make sure that a well-lighted ring/arena is used. b. Riders entering the FEI Freestyle to music test, must ensure that the sound on the video recording device is switched on and that the music can be clearly heard in the video. c. The name of the video file should include the rider s last name, horse name, date, Grade and test being submitted. d. Videos may include more than one test providing there is a five second pause between tests, and are clearly marked with the test, date, rider s last name and horse name. How to Create a YouTube Account Go to YouTube.com and create an account. To do this, click on the Sign Up button at the top of the screen. Fill out all of the requested information. An e-mail will be sent to you to confirm your e-mail address. Clink the link to confirm. Customize Your YouTube Profile You can customize your profile by clicking on your username at the top of the screen. You can choose to add a photo, video logs, favorite videos, subscribers and friends. Fill In the Video Upload Information To upload a video, go to the upload page by clicking on upload in the upper right corner of the homepage. On this page, fill out your video information including title, description and tags. Tags are key words used to describe your video, i.e. Gr. Test.. Upload the Video to YouTube The next step is to upload your video onto YouTube from your computer. Click on Upload Video to find a video file on your computer. Next, click the browse button to search for the file you want to upload. Double click on the file and it will appear in the text box. Click on Upload Video.
Please be aware that posting videos on YouTube without security settings will allow outside individuals to view your video. It is highly recommended that users set the YouTube security setting to unlisted (only those who have been provided the link, can view the video). Video Entry Process and Checklist Entry Due Date: 25 th of each month. Once riders have a video of themselves performing a specific test, log in to your USEF Membership portal at www.usef.org, My Way at the top right side of page. Once logged in, go to http://staginghome.usef.org/forms/para-equestrian-video in your browser. There you will copy the YouTube Video URL, Trainer Name, Trainer Email, Trainer Phone. If no trainer, use rider info. Rider Name, Horse Name, Grade, Test, and Detail on rider classification (nonclassified, classified National or International). Please note: On occasion there may be trouble uploading the YouTube Video to the USEF. If so, please email the YouTube link to Laureen Johnson lkjohnson@usef.org and ensure the email lists all the required information provided above. When you are uploading your video, please ensure your video and entry meets the following requirements. Have you previewed your video to ensure that it is clear and meets the entry requirements Is you video in one of the following file formats: avi (audio video interleave), mov (QuickTime- Apple), wmv (winder media video), flv (flash)? Is your video less than 2 GB Is your video file name properly saved (i.e. rider last name and test entered)? Unlisted YouTube link (Only those who have been provided the link, can view the video) Once your submission is completed, USEF High Performance Director, Laureen Johnson, will forward the YouTube Video link to the two (2) International Judges, the USEF Para Dressage High Performance Consultant, Michel Assouline and Chef d Equipe, Kai Handt for their review. Cost $20 per submitted test. Exception: Athletes who have achieved Elite status in accordance with the USEF Para Dressage Program Structure and Pathways may submit up to four tests free of charge on a monthly basis. Athletes will be invoiced for all videos submitted in September, 2018. Results The results of each test submitted will be completed by the International Para Dressage judges (2) and returned to the USEF High Performance Director, Laureen Johnson, who will forward the score sheets directly to the athlete and trainer, along with any comments made by Michel Assouline and Kai Handt. Other Rules 1. The Judges decisions are final. 2. No communication or discussion will be entered into with the judges involved. 3. Videos of tests must not have been recorded at any official competition. Any video which is suspected of having been filmed during a competition will not be accepted. In these circumstances.
4. If the quality of a video is considered too poor to be judged, the competitors will be given the opportunity to submit a further video. 5. Athletes may only submit one Novice Test, one Team Test, one Individual Test and one Freestyle Test per month (maximum 4 tests monthly). Exception: Athletes who have achieved Elite status in accordance with the USEF Para Dressage Program Structure and Pathways may submit up to 8 tests maximum on a monthly basis.